DESCRIBED by the Guardian newspaper as ‘a new British guitar heroine’, Kit Holmes is a singer songwriter, virtuoso guitarist and fiddler, who’s touring Devon village halls to delight audiences with her bluesy vocals and poignant lyrics.

And to make her sound all the richer, Kit is bringing Al Greenwood to accompany her on his guitar.

She is brought to the county by Devon’s touring scheme, Villages in Action (ViA).

Many readers will be loyal listeners to ‘whispering’ Bob Harris on BBC Radio Two. He is a fan of Kit’s, as is discerning DJ Andy Kershaw. Both DJ’s gave Kit some much-needed exposure on Radio 2 as she was developing her career.

‘After 13 years of touring there have been many highlights,’ said Kit. ‘One I’ll always remember was playing for the Honorary Doctorate Ceremony, at the University of Leeds, for novelist, Bill Bryson and BBC Radio DJ, Andy Kershaw. It was a wonderful event!’

Since then she has performed at Paul McCartney’s Performing Arts College, Liverpool Institute for Performing?Arts and been headline act at the International Guitar Festival, but its rural audiences that Kit and Al especially enjoy performing for.

‘There are so many things we both enjoy about performing for the Rural Touring Scheme,’ said Al. ‘There’s the warmth, the atmosphere, sometimes the unexpected! We’ve toured rural Wiltshire, Cumbria, Oxfordshire, Northumberland, Suffolk, Norfolk, Hampshire, Somerset, Cornwall and Kent so Devon is long overdue!’

Musicians always shy away from comparisons, but Kit Holmes can surely not be offended to have the Guardian describe her music as ‘Macy Gray meets Nick Drake.’ With her striking retro look, peroxide coiffure and witty stage banter, she offers an evening to inspire young people as well as their parents and grandparents.

Villages in Action believes contact with talent like Kit Holmes in a local village setting is vital for inspiring the next generation of rural artists. However, the scheme has recently had to announce its closure after 24 years due to a funding shortfall. The current spring season (finishing on April 22) is the last one planned.

‘Some of our volunteers already operate an events programme in tandem with ViA performances and I hope that others may feel able to “go it alone” using the knowledge they have gained through ViA. We are so very grateful to everyone who has supported Villages in Action but especially the promoters, because without them, none of the fantastic events we have enjoyed would have been possible.’

Kit Holmes and Al Greenwood will be playing at Brentor Village Hall on Sunday, March 12 at 8pm.